When vaporizing a fluid it is highly desirable for 100% of the fluid to vaporize when a vaporization heater is activated. Conventional heaters desire improvement in that invariably some liquid is discharged from the vaporization device or otherwise remains within the vaporization device. In the case of fluid that remains in the vaporization device, such liquid may be exposed to excessively high temperatures which causes undesirable smoking or undesirable chemical reactions of the liquid due to exposure to the high temperatures.
Rapid heating of the heater is essential to assuring that all of the liquid conveyed to the heater is vaporized. Complete vaporization of the fluid is important in order to avoid entraining liquid droplets in the vapor stream from the vaporization device. In some applications, the discharge of liquid is not only undesirable, but may be detrimental to the user. In order to avoid the discharge of liquid droplets from a vaporization device, the stream of fluid ejected to the heater must be efficiently captured by the heater, and completely vaporized at approximately the same rate as the fluid arrives to the heater.
In view of the foregoing, embodiments of the disclosure provide a heater configuration that advantageously avoids problems associated with conventional heaters and effectively contains the jetted fluid and vaporizes all of the contained fluid within a desired amount of time and at desired temperature levels.
In one aspect, there is provided a vaporization heater for a fluid vaporization device and a method for vaporizing fluid. The vaporization heater includes at least two fluid reservoirs and heating elements made of an electrically conductive material selected from the group consisting of a conductive mesh and an interwoven wire located within each of the at least two fluid reservoirs. The at least two fluid reservoirs and the heating elements therefor define a fluid volume sufficient to capture and retain a fixed volume of fluid that is ejected from an ejection head associated with a fluid supply cartridge in the fluid vaporization device. The fluid supply cartridge contains at least two different fluids. Application of electrical energy to the heating elements vaporizes the fixed volume of fluid in the at least two fluid reservoirs.
In another embodiment, there is provided a fluid vaporization device that includes a housing body, a mouthpiece attached to the housing body, and a vaporization heater disposed adjacent to the mouthpiece for vaporizing fluid ejected from an ejection head associated with a fluid supply cartridge onto the vaporization heater. The vaporization heater comprises at least two fluid reservoirs and heating elements made of an electrically conductive material selected from the group consisting of a conductive mesh and an interwoven wire located within each of the at least two fluid reservoirs. The at least two fluid reservoirs and the heating elements therefor define a fluid volume sufficient to capture and retain a fixed volume of fluid that is ejected from an ejection head associated with the fluid supply cartridge in the fluid vaporization device. The fluid supply cartridge contains at least two different fluids. Application of electrical energy to the heating elements vaporizes the fixed volume of fluid in the at least two fluid reservoirs.
In another embodiment, there is provided a method for vaporizing a fluid ejected by an ejection head. The method includes providing a fluid vaporization device having an ejection head, a fluid supply cartridge associated with the ejection head. The fluid supply cartridge contains at least two different fluids. A vaporizing heater is disposed adjacent to the ejection head. Two or more fluids are ejected from the ejection head onto the vaporizing heater. The vaporizing heater activated during or after fluid ejection in order to vaporizes substantially all of the fluid ejected onto the vaporizing heater. The vaporizing heater contains at least two fluid reservoirs and a heating element located within each of the at least two fluid reservoirs. Each heating element is made of an electrically conductive material selected from the group consisting of a conductive mesh and an interwoven wire. The at least two fluid reservoirs and the heating elements therefor define a fluid volume sufficient to capture and retain a fixed volume of fluid that is ejected from the ejection head in the vaporization device. Electrical energy is applied to the heating elements to vaporize the fixed volume of fluid in the at least two fluid reservoirs.
In some embodiments, the at least two fluid reservoirs are made of a material that is not electrically conductive. In other embodiments the at least two fluid reservoirs are made of ceramic.
In another embodiment, the heating elements are a conductive mesh. In yet another embodiment, the heating elements are made of interwoven wire, and is made of kanthal or nichrome or stainless steel or combinations thereof.
In some embodiments, the vaporization heater includes four fluid reservoirs and heating elements located with each of the four fluid reservoirs.
In some embodiments, the fluid supply cartridge contains three or four different fluids. In some embodiments, at least two of the at least two different fluids are vaporized simultaneously. In other embodiments, at least two of the two different fluids are vaporized sequentially.